interview by Janna Shaw
photographs by Pavel Golik

I once dreamt of Luca Magliano. I had no idea what he looked like; he appeared veiled but in no way sinister. In one of Magliano’s earlier video presentations, a poem is recited, a sonnet with lines dedicated to each garment displayed. “Out of Saint Teresa of Avila’s Chanel coat I stole one dollar to gift to my golden Wagner jacket.” After this display of romance, I wandered about my own closet, singing praises sweetly and theatrically to my own favourite pieces. Something poignant to this act.

Luca Magliano’s self-titled fashion brand is described as “Quintessentially Italian” and “An Emotional Anthropology”. Since its establishment in 2016, the brand’s collections have unfolded as a personal reflection of the vast imagination of Magliano, who derives inspiration from the works of artists and filmmakers such as Luchino Visconti, as well as his own emotions, encounters, curiosities, and experiences. We spoke with the emerging designer about his FW 22/23 collection and his celebration of solitude and melancholia. We speak about his love for Italy and my love for Italians, we discuss sleep and what follows it. We don’t talk much about clothes. We decide to let those speak for themselves. Read more.

Sylvio Giardina's new fall-winter 2011/12 collection is based on experiments with brand new silhouettes. "The stylistic investigation aims at a moved centre of mass, an imbalanced balance which will change shapes, volumes and lengths made up together by asymmetrical panels to redesign the figure. It’s like an a architecture of the fabrics that re-edits proportions to give a new female identity which finds the final product and the subjective taste." Giardina attempts to kill homogeneity whilst maintaing the tradition of Italian fashion and contemporary culture. For instance, "Embroideries on jersey fabric find new lines sew on together: no armhole for the sleeves, exaggerated curves set up by upside down strapless to emphasize décolleté (neckline). A synthetic colours palette, like helio-blue and yellow cadmium, joins anthracite grey and impure white of the wool of the pants, tube-dresses, jersey shirts and jackets." Primary fabrics, such as male-wools, fresh-wool, jersey-wool and crêpe wool are all embroidered in San Gallo, in Italy.

"Accessorizes break harmony with strong mirror and colored plexiglass buckles in relief on the tissues like sculptural elements. No prêt-à-porter, no Haute Couture, this is a collection full of contaminations: the most important from art and design influences, where Sylvio Giardina finds himself as spectator and artist."